Nine Schools Selected to Perform on High School's Biggest Stage at the 2024 International Thespian Festival

Nine schools have been selected to perform on the main stage at the 2024 International Thespian Festival (ITF): the annual teen theatre event that represents high school theatre’s biggest stage, held June 23-28 at Indiana University in Bloomington and produced by the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA).

The highly coveted invitation to the main stage is a huge honor for International Thespian Society students. More than 20 high-caliber productions were screened this year for the nine available slots. This year’s lineup of seven musicals and two plays includes five schools showcasing for the first time* and five titles that have never been seen on the ITF main stage**:

*Arroyo Grande High School

Troupe 648, Arroyo Grande, Calif.

Silent Sky

Director: Sean Blauvelt

Bradford High School

Troupe 4982, Kenosha, Wis.

**Between the Lines

Director: Holly Stanfield and Benjamin Woods

Denver School of the Arts

Troupe 5869, Denver, Colo.

Kinky Boots

Director: Shawn Hann

*Episcopal School of Baton Rouge

Troupe 88800, Baton Rouge, La.

**Indecent

Director: Lily McGill

*Fossil Ridge High School

Troupe 7339, Fort Collins, Colo.

**Alice By Heart

Director: Mikayla Assmus

Hoboken High School

Troupe 7268, Hoboken, N.J.

Into the Woods

Director: Derek Kinnear

Rock Ridge Performing Arts

Troupe 8104, Ashburn, Va.

Rent: School Edition

Director: Anthony Cimino-Johnson

*Warsaw Community High School

Troupe 5648, Warsaw, Ind.

**My Heart Says Go

Director: Melany Morris

*Wauwatosa West High School

Troupe 6903, Wauwatosa, Wis.

**Disney’s Frozen: The Broadway Musical

Director: Adam Steffan

“We are thrilled to welcome these nine schools to ITF’s main stage, where we not only have the opportunity to witness their students’ artistry, but to also recognize their teachers’ dedication to fostering creativity and to celebrate their accomplishments as a community,” said Dr. Jennifer Katona, EdTA’s executive director. “We are especially excited that five of these schools will have the opportunity to perform on our main stage for the first time.”

In addition to these performances, ITF features one-acts nominated by EdTA’s 40-plus chapters, hundreds of interactive workshops, a college fair and auditions, a backstage skills challenge presented by Disney Live Entertainment, a workshop and staged reading of a commissioned one-act play with Stage Partners, a collaboration with The 24 Hour Plays, and the final round of the International Thespian Excellence Awards, or Thespys® for short, which recognize the highest level of achievement in school theatre and culminates with the Thespy Awards Showcase.

Registration for ITF is open now and runs through May 1 at itf.schooltheatre.org.

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